Some interesting research at the University of Illinois has been looking at blasting weeds away to assist organic tomato and pepper growers. The research could lead to tests looking at controlling weeds in kale fields.

For growers coping with white mold, caused by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, the symptoms can look like the common name: a gauzy white coating, particularly when humid conditions prevail. But they can also appear as brown lesions on stems and stalks.

Keeping kale dark and green in the field and maintaining vitamins and minerals in the plant mean growers must control insects that feed or suck on this leafy vegetable. One such pest includes the whitefly.

Muranaka Farm was founded in 1947 by Minoru Muranaka and his wife, Matsue. They had a trucking fleet that hauled vegetable produce daily from the Japanese-American farms in the Culver City/West Los Angeles area to the downtown Los Angeles market.